RECALLING THE ROADS LESS TRAVELLED
FILM
THE LAST BUS
DIRECTED BY GILLIES MACKINNON
NATIONWIDE RELEASE 26 AUGUST
Timothy Spall is superb as Thomas Harper, who, in order to fulfil a promise to his deceased wife, embarks on a personal pilgrimage from John O’Groats to Land’s End, travelling entirely by bus.
Although his exact age is never disclosed, Harper served in the Second World War as a 15-year-old, putting him in his 90s. Spall’s embodiment of the frailty of age is beautifully accurate – unsteady gait, slight stoop, cautious movement. It makes the journey immensely moving, as we watch this tenacious man determinedly travel the length of Britain, plotting bus routes and rest stops at cheap hotels and cafés.
The emotional power of this film is in Spall’s performance and
